“My probation officer asked me like how she can help me to get myself into a better place coz I was on a bit of a downward slide with things, I guess, which is why, you know, I got into trouble. That’s one of the reasons I got into trouble in the first place and was just sucked into the wrong flow of things and that. I’m normally quite a positive and upbeat person, but I could feel myself getting sucked away, I guess, in a way like, you know, losing myself a little bit. So I spoke to the probation lady and she said like how can we help and she said what’s your interests, what do you like doing and that, and I said I just love being creative and put my mind to any task, whether it’s new or something I know already and I would love to be able to step out from my job that I’ve done for so long.
Even though I love … my boss is great, he’s brilliant, but I don’t want to be doing care work forever and I’m gonna be ** next year and I need to … I feel like I kind of like need to make changes now to do stuff. So, I said to her about my passion for like with working with wood. I said like I’ve always found it interesting and that. I said it gets me quite excited just doing any projects actually. I’m quite sort of like, you know, I like to get involved and she then suggested to pop along, go and come and see you guys coz she’s like I know exactly the sort of place that can help you with that, but I was surprised that she could offer me that to be honest and yeah, she brought me along to meet you guys. Yeah.
Being here with you guys and that as well, it’s given me … coz working on a one-to-one with my boss, it can get a bit isolated, you know, and it’s really nice having other people around that I can bounce off, you know, and learn skills off and interact with. I think that that’s helping me to become me again and I really do feel like I’m stepping back into my own body and soul, you know.
I feel like I could chat the backside off a donkey at the minute, so that’s good as well. I find that like if I’m not doing so well, then I go … well, I suppose it’s the same with anyone, they go more introvert don’t they and you find that reaching out and just talking, you know, is not something that you can actually do at the time, so yeah, it’s definitely helping my mental health, absolutely.
The majority of the time I’ve been in with Graham, which I’m loving being in there. It’s so good. I’ve been sanding down a lot of chopping-boards, using the router. I’ve never used one of those before as well, so that was a new skill as well to learn. I’ve been cutting some wood last week on the band-saw as well. Yeah, we popped out a few times to like go and pick up some timber and stuff as well, so chatting with the people at the timber yards and things like that.
I feel like it doesn’t matter where my head is particularly at, whenever I come here, I can speak to you guys or turn my family upside-down and that, so that’s a big tower of strength for me coz it’s always been me that’s done that for others. Because of being in care work and … I mean years and years ago I was actually in foster care myself, so I think that’s why I ended up going into care work as well, like you know, stepping into it coz it’s like well I got looked after so I wanna look after other people, and you guys provide that family connection network and community feel, which is really important for positive decisions and support.
So yeah, it’s been really good. I’m almost feeling like I’ve like grown up a bit as well like. I’ve always thought and wondered like, you know, when it was gonna happen and in many ways I felt like I was like being a little bit younger in my years for what I should be, but being here and learning new stuff and just being here, it’s really helped me and it’s almost like I’m happy to do that and I’m embracing that now rather than shying it away and it’s like, you know, I’m quite enjoying like feeling like a responsible person, you know, and it’s like … even saying that out loud now actually … so that’s really cool. I feel like I could take quite a lot of different things on, you know, and give it my all and that, whereas I was a bit resistant, I suppose, for a bit, and that as well like, you know, and it’s like what’s the worst thing that can happen. You may as well have a go and give it your best shot. So, at the end of the day, you know, it’s really nice to lay down, lay my head on the pillow and thinking I did the best that I could do, rather than, you know, I shouldn’t have done that, I stepped out of line or whatever. It’s really nice to, you know, it’s really good … holistic, like you know, inside and out.
It provides a feeling of belonging, you know. At times where you wander off on like life’s little paths on your own, sometimes they go to nice places, but you know, you might go for a woodland stroll, like you know, and sometimes you get into sticky situations and it’s like oh, I shouldn’t have made that turn, but it centres back to all being together, you know. No matter what walk of life that you come from, it’s like, you know, there’s no prejudice, you know, it doesn’t matter what you’ve done or whatever, we’re all here now and we’re all doing it now, you know, so to be present in the situation…
…also to sit down or to enjoy a meal that’s … everyone’s eating the same as well and to sit down and just interact with different stories, different chit-chats, whatever’s going on, so the sharing of stories and stuff is really nice and the getting together, it makes it like a celebration of food rather than just something to eat as well, you know, so that’s really nice.”
A window into LandWorks 